If I see any more comments on Mumsnet of it's just a dog

[Lifeneedsaresetagain]

Do people not realise that for those who welcome them into the family they are part of the family. And if you have a dog and say it's just a dog, I'm not sure you should have one.

So @Pricelessadvicewhat if the two mammals in the scenario were yourself and your dog?

Dogs are very likeable because if you feed them, they will offer you love in return. They are very straightforward compared to humans. If you stop feeding them and someone else starts feeding them, they will switch their affection quite happily. I have had two dogs from previous (perfectly good owners) and both dogs 'loved' me as if I had been their owner all along. I would never say it is 'just a dog' because I would never say that about any human or animal even if it is the chicken I'm eating.

I think you have fundamentally misunderstood the AIBU chat room.

Sounds like you've also misunderstood about dogs and their position in the world. "Treated like a dog, "Dog's dinner", "Work like a dog" and "Bitch" as an insult, aren't common expressions because dogs are seen as fundamentally important and respectable.

I like dogs but I don't have a dog at the moment.
I don't mind the company of well behaved dogs anywhere, wouldn't want an untrained one in my house.

Was in a cafe recently and a woman had her dog in...it was tied to her chair leg and came over to bother us when our food was served, jumping up and scrabbling. The woman didn't notice. I pleasantly shooed it away then watched as it cocked its leg and peed right up her coat which was slung over her chair.

If I am to ever have a dog again, I'd have to invest time in making sure the dog was content at home alone for a couple of hours. I don't want to have to take it everywhere with me.

A lot of emotionally stunted people prefer animals to humans because they don't have to relate to animals in the same way, they're a lot less complex.

I have two cats I adore and I am an animal lover, had pets all my life, but they aren't on a par with humans (as a general rule rather than specific people) and I think people who would say they were have something quite fundamental lacking.

Your point here though is that this is about sensible dog people. Many are not. It’s those who cause drama. You may not want to take dogs to shops etc but loads do.

I’m sick of dog poo everywhere and wet noses touching me as I walk around the shops/down the street.

we try to find dog free places but there are so few now.

Exactly. I used to go to gigs fairly regularly. I can't anymore because I'm a single mum with a baby, no childcare, and I can't afford it!

So if you think dogs are on a par with other pets then please tell us when you last met a guide guinea pig or watched a goldfish herding sheep or waited in the snow for a search and rescue rat. Dogs are working animals, as are cats in some places. Surely that makes them pretty special when compared to the average gerbil or hamster.

I don’t know if you are completely correct. We didn’t get a dog until just before COVID (a rescue, and only because there was now someone at home during the day) and whilst I do feel that our dog is very much the focus of our family now, there are a lot of families who have always had dogs, working dogs particularly, and their relationship with their dogs is different.

So if someone says “it’s just a dog” I assume they are referring to their working dogs, and not the family pet…. I wouldn’t automatically write them off as being incapable of owning a dog, but then I accept that other people’s circumstances are different and don’t tend to judge!

A dog can still be considered a family pet, and part of the unit, but it is still a dog which has to be kept sufficiently exercised, trained, and mentally engaged and has pack instincts. By saying it is part of the family it can often just mean the dogs real requirements are ignored, not recognised and understood.

Many family dogs are under exercised, bored and lack of discipline which seems to turn them into fur babies which seems to be an excuse for bad behaviour. To me I think this is really cruel, the dog must have a miserable life not been able to behave like an actual dog.

I have had dogs and have loved them so much. My last dog died over a year ago and I still cry when I think of her. I miss her so much. I cannot get another dog because it wouldn't be her.

However, I appreciate that to others she was just a dog. Some people probably didn't like her or were maybe even scared of her. Same as to other people my child, who came along at the end of her life so I have experienced loving a dog for much longer, is just another child they don't care for. And I am just another person that people don't care for. And my husband is just another man that many people don't care for. Why would you expect strangers to care about the things in your life?

You can love the things in your life all you want to, but don't expect other people to do the same. A lot of people don't view animals the same way we do. And that's up to them. I care deeply about the environment and wild animals and plants. I wish more people felt the same but they don't. And I can't bully them into caring about the things I do, no more than you can @Lifeneedsaresetagain. We should be respectful always of course, but you can't expect people to elevate their feelings to match yours. There are lots of things I couldn't give a shit about, like football, which mean a fuck of a lot to others. We can't rank other people's feelings in life.

What's the point of this thread?

Totally agree with this. I think a majority of people have no idea how to truly care for a dog. Same for cats, rabbits and many other animals. Fish in tiny bowls, rabbits in tiny cages, dogs having one 20 minute walk a day then left alone for 9 hours. I think most people get by on the bare minimum with their pets.

Out of interest - why did you post on AIBU if you don’t want people to comment??

you will get people with all kinds of thoughts and I don’t see anyone being derogatory. People are just being honest.

I totally respect people who love their pets. We have a pet. I’m not anti dog. But I am anti badly behaved dogs, dogs who are everywhere, poo that I tread in, and the assumption that dogs can go everywhere (by SOME owners).

I like to meet up with friends who have dogs as long as they are well behaved and don’t lick me or jump on me.

i think you probably knew that starting a dog thread would cause some heated discussion!! But you can’t stop people commenting

99.99999% of dogs are accessories that people drag around at the end of a bit of string, annoy people with, and leave piss and shit everywhere.

Only a tiny number of dogs are working dogs.

Speaking as a dog lover, I can't agree with this.
I understand dogs' wonderful loyalty, intelligence and bond with humans. I've been amazed over the years by the abilities my dogs have shown.
Nevertheless, they are not humans and not on a par with humans, for all sorts of reasons I don't have the skills to clearly articulate.

Animals are definitely simpler and I appreciate that’s why some people prefer them but I think it’s one of the factors that make them not comparable to people.

You had a child because you wanted a child, people get dogs because they want dogs. You didn’t get the dog because you expected it to love you unconditionally, you got the dog with the expectation it would do a job of supporting your child. It sounds like the dog is important to you because of what it does for your child not just for existing. That’s not to say you can’t still love and enjoy the dog too, just that it’s a different relationship with different expectations.

It’s just a dog…….and I have one.

It's a dog. It's not "just" a dog. And I have one.

I actually don’t agree any of those things are acceptable to be done to animals. I’m not saying the way I see the world is the way the world is, I’m just saying I don’t agree with it!

This is absolutely untrue that they switch affections easily, they are not like cats. Dogs can show serious loyalty. I knew a dog that nearly starved to death because its owner had to work abroad for several months. It had another person it knew very well feeding it, but was too sad to eat. Dogs can be loyal to the point of death, they do not switch their affection 'quite happily'. (coming from someone who has known and worked with a LOT of dogs and other animals)

I’m reminded of someone at work who said, after the dog we’d had for over 14 years finally had to be put to sleep, ‘Well, you can always get another.’

As if I’d had my ipad nicked or something.

Such people honestly have absolutely no idea.

In some cases I've adopted animals because they came from bad backgrounds and I knew I could give them food security and safety. Not because I was really seeking out an animal but knew I could make the effort for the sake of the animal.

As for the dog, yes, that's entirely my daughter's want. Because of what it does for my daughter, I would protect the dog fiercely and pay for anything even remotely suggested by the vet. I did say no dog for quite a while though.

I don't agree with "it's just a dog" in the same way I don't agree with it being just a mouse, just a cat, just a cow, a chicken, a lizard, just whatever. It's a living, feeling being with needs. They do deserve as much consideration as a human, though that doesn't mean they have to go everywhere and anywhere.

I imagine I’d push my dog out the way. And if you don’t believe that, I have actually put myself in a potentially very dangerous situation to save an animal of mine. It was instinct more than a thought out thing.
I can’t help the way I feel about my animals. I don’t particularly like children and never have. I understand other people like children and that’s fine for them. But my animals are my whole world.
That said, I don’t force non-dog people to like my dogs. I don’t take them to people’s houses, to cafes or shops. I don’t let them approach people without permission.

People are all different 😀